Rev. Michael Walrond said Rangel has not been honest about his record.

The barbs were sharp Wednesday night, but in their second televised debate, the three candidates in the 13th Congressional District race largely avoided the racially charged rhetoric that characterized their first televised debate last week. That's when Rangel said Espaillat has campaigned by doing nothing more than saying he’s “a Dominican” and referenced a racially charged flier Espaillat sent to voters in 2012 when seeking re-election to his Senate seat.

On Wednesday night, at Lehman College in the Bronx, the candidates stood for 60 minutes, fielding questions ranging from local housing laws (Should someone making $170,000 a year be allowed to stay in a rent-controlled apartment?) to international law (Do you support President Obama’s deportation policy?)

Espaillat, 59, tried framing the race as a turning point for a district whose incumbent turned 84 on Wednesday and has been in Washington for 40 years, and whose residents have difficulty finding affordable housing and decent jobs.

“This is ultimately about the past and future [and] change,” Espaillat said.

He also said states and cities need to pass bills to help undocumented residents obtain identification cards and tuition assistance “because Congress is broken and they have not been able to pass the immigration reform bill."

Later, Espaillat said, “I’m running on my record and I’m running for change: to break with the past, to look toward the future. ... What can we do to bring this neighborhood back together and how can we move forward?”

Rangel urged voters to consider who can be the most effective in Washington.

He said he was moved by the “passion” his rivals have demonstrated, but “every two years” the people elect “who can best serve” their district.

“There are serious issues” facing the president and the Congress, Rangel said. “I don’t really think this is the time for trainees, no matter how passionate they are, to be going to the United States House of Representatives.”

For his part, Walrond said the 13th District seat should be occupied by a "visionary."

“This is not about whether, because of shifting demographics, we should have a Latino representative in Congress. This is not about [because of] the historic nature of the seat, we should have an African-American,” he said.

Walrond said it was “impossible” to believe the other candidates, with a combined 60 years of experience in elected office, “have the capacity to even talk about change.”

Afterward, he told reporters he “was amazed” Rangel “is not honest about his record and where he stands.”

In particular, Walrond said it was inaccurate for Rangel to claim, as he did on stage, that he has been the most productive member in Congress over the past ten years, when nearly all of the legislative action he's responsible for came before his 2010 censure.

The candidates also fielded an array of rapid-fire questions, a format that has become the hallmark of debates hosted by NY1, which co-sponsored Wednesday night's event. Some of the questions were serious, others were not:

Do you know how to cook a full meal?

Rangel: “I can mess up something, yeah.”

Espailla: “Yes, I do.”

Walrond: "I do.”

Do you support hydrofracking in New York State?

Rangel: “With the proper protections which we haven’t seen, yes. But I’m looking forward to America leading in natural gas.”

Espaillat: “Absolutely not.”

Walrond: "No."

Is Harlem still the center of black America?

“Of what?” Rangel asked, either because he did not hear, or out of disbelief—it was not clear. Upon hearing the question again, he replied, “Well, in terms of history, and culture and music and jazz and churches and in my heart, you bet your sweet life.”